Cellular Service in Ireland

You can get an International Plan through Verizon. Last time I checked, it was $10 per day of use, but I am not familiar with the service provider they use or the data/talk/text specifics. You can look on their website for more details.

I'd recommend buying a SIM card upon arrival and using it in your iPhone. We did this in April, and it literally took 5 minutes to buy the card, pop them in and call to ensure our top up was active. It was 20 euros a piece on Three (network) at Carphone Warehouse, and we had service the entire time. This included 1 GB data. To call back to the US, I used either Facebook messaging app or FaceTime (video or audio), both of which use data or Wifi.

I'm not sure about Verizon but I checked with my carrier, Sprint. They have a Global plan that works in the UK and Ireland. It's free to have on the phone but costs 20 cents a minute when I make calls over the cell network. They also have a free feature that allows you to call back to the US from Ireland for free if you use wifi.

We only plan on using our phone in case of emergency so 20 cents a minute is okay. It doesn't give us data, though.

There is service everywhere in Ireland. You will also find wifi most everywhere as well. I did not use my data plan when we were there.. just use wifi. We did have data on my husband's phone. We had called our provider and they had an international package that we purchased.

"this is probably basic to many of you "

Unfortunately, it changes all the time, so it's not basic at all - don't feel embarrassed!

Everyone will have a different solution. Some just use Wi-Fi and don't get any local cellular service. Some just use their US plan; this is easiest, but can be very expensive if you're using it heavily. Some get a local SIM and plan; this can be cheaper if you're using the phone a lot (particularly for data), but it does give you a local phone number (in this case, you'd have an Irish phone), so anyone wanting to reach you from the US has to make an international call.

I don't have Verizon, so I can't help you with specifics. However, other recent threads indicate that there are two plans: one is $10 per day for every day you use the phone in Europe (and zero on days you don't) and for this you get full use of all the calls, texts, and data you want. This is a good deal if you're only using the phone on some days, and you don't have to decide in advance. The other one is $40 per month, so if you plan to use the phone for more than 4 days, it's a better deal. However, apparently this $40 deal is well hidden on their website.

The other thing that other threads indicate is that the regular Verizon customer service people simply don't know much about international use of the phones, and if you want accurate information, you have to deal with the International Customer Service people, who in turn can be hard to get to (someone described having to push and insist).

Thanks again. From reading these posts, I am leaning towards getting a SIM card when I get there and installing it in my iPhone if it's not too complicated. I don't think I will use it too much--maybe a few times a day at most, to contact my family (we are all going to a destination wedding), and maybe call ahead for some attractions.

David H
New Jersey

I have Verizon and have used the $10/day plan overseas, including in Ireland.

The Travel Pass plan works the way that they say it does. For $10/day, you can use all of the existing features of your home plan - calls, texting, data - just like you would at home. The day's session starts the moment that you make your first call, text, etc., and it expires 24 hours later. They send you a free text that tells you that your 24 hours is about to expire. I think the rate is slightly less for travel to Canada and Mexico, but for Ireland it would be $10/day.

If you don't plan to use the phone much, it's not a bad deal. If you can get by on hotel WiFi and don't need to constantly reach out and touch someone, then it's a good emergency system.

Verizon also has a $40/month international plan with different features and different limitations. I haven't used that specific one, so I don't know how much data that includes, how many calls, if texts are included or priced separately, etc.

Either way, you have to call Verizon or log into your account online to arrange international service before you leave. I know that Travel Pass can be set up online. I don't know about the $40/month plan.

If you do go with the $40/month plan, you'll need to call to cancel it when you return. Otherwise it will remain on your bill as a recurring feature. (At least that's how it used to work when I used their monthly travel plans for overseas trips.)

Travel Pass is only charged when it is used. It also remains on your account until you call or go online to remove it, but again you are only charged for it when you are outside the US.

I was just in Europe for almost two weeks and used the TravelPass on Verizon as well. Since there was WiFi nearly everywhere I went (I was in Scandinavia), I only had to use the TravelPass one day (that was just to text my AirBnB). If you plan on relying mostly on WiFi, the TravelPass would work great. However, if you end up using your phone every day, that could end up being expensive. I know there are other international plans if you plan on using your phone more.

https://www.verizonwireless.com/solutions-and-services/international-travel/